The fight is over and the wait has begun for Democrat Christine Gregoire and Republican Dino Rossi to learn which of them will be the state’s next governor.
Gregoire and Rossi rested Wednesday, the fate of their high-stakes duel resting with hundreds of thousands of absentee ballots still to be counted throughout the state.
Late Wednesday, Gregoire held a lead of nearly 25,000 votes – less than 1 percent overall – due primarily to an infusion of votes from heavily Democratic King County.
Neither candidate spoke with reporters on Wednesday.
Officials of both campaigns cautioned against predicting outcomes until all of the estimated 900,000 absentee and provisional ballots have been tallied.
“We’re hopeful about the King County results coming in,” Gregoire spokesman Chuck Hunter said of Wednesday’s boost. But, “until all the votes are in, we’re just waiting like everyone else.”
Gregoire spent Wednesday relaxing with her family.
Rossi took his children to school, phoned supporters and took a call from Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, who had lent his support in a radio ad, campaign spokeswoman Janelle Guthrie said.
She said campaign officials expected the King County bump for Gregoire, and predicted lead changes throughout the coming days, with no definitive outcome until next week. “It’s all a guessing game,” she said.
When the polls closed on Tuesday, Gregoire held a slim advantage, though Rossi led in 31 of the state’s 39 counties, including Snohomish County. The same pattern held even after additional votes were counted Wednesday in 12 counties around the state.
Gregoire was getting the most votes in King County, the state’s most populous, but Rossi led in five of the six areas in the state with the most voters, including Snohomish, Pierce, Spokane, Clark and Kitsap counties.
In Snohomish County, Rossi is ahead of Gregoire by 3,240 votes. Snohomish County isn’t scheduled to count votes again until Friday. On Wednesday, there were already more than 72,000 ballots waiting to be tallied, manager Carolyn Diepenbrock said.
More than 43,500 absentee ballots arrived at the county auditor’s office by mail Tuesday and Wednesday. Another 20,000 absentees were dropped off by voters at polling places on Tuesday.
There also are 9,100 provisional ballots to be reviewed. “Not all of those are going to be counted,” Diepenbrock said, because some may have been cast by ineligible voters.
So far, there have been no challenges to vote counting here. Officials forecast that up to 84 percent of the county’s 352,000 voters would participate in the election. The absentee votes are on pace to affirm that prediction. Poll workers say the turnout was the biggest in recent memory
County auditors have until Nov. 17 to certify the results and forward them to the secretary of state.
According to the Secretary of State’s Office, a recount would be required if the margin of difference is fewer than 2,000 votes and less than half of 1 percent of the total votes cast for both candidates. A recount wouldn’t happen until after the Secretary of State’s Office certifies the returns on Dec. 2.
The Secretary of State’s Office is updating the vote tallies in the governor’s race as it receives new information from counties. To track those updates, go to www.secstate.wa.gov.
Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@ heraldnet.com.
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